Lazy Line Dry

Step 3 Clothes with plastic hangers: The Hangers

Plastic hangers are the way to go. Steel wire hangers could rust and stain the clothes. Vinyl-coated wire hangers can work, but they generally aren't quite strong enough to hold their shape with a heavy, wet shirt, and vinyl isn't a very green material. Wood is also a good option. Commenters here have suggested that good wood hangers help avoid shoulder bumps in shirts, and that they are often available on freecycle. You could use this nontoxic waterproof finish if you have unfinished wood hangers. Hollow, large-diameter plastic hangers are widely available at discount stores.

For pants and skirts, clamping hangers with a metal mechanism and plastic arms work nicely and are also readily available.

If you are worried about the petroleum used to make the plastic in the hangers, consider this: One dryer-load can use about 2 kWh of electricity. If that electricity is produced by a power plant burning oil, it requires about a pound of oil. (In practice coal in the predominant fuel used to make electricity in the US but that's even worse, environmentally.) That pound of oil could make a lot of plastic hangers, which can be used for a lifetime of loads of laundry, not just one.

If you have trouble with stuff blowing off the line, you can hold the hanger on the line with a clothespin. But since that's extra work each time, better options are to add a hook to to the hanger or use a commercial product called the Tibbe line. Both of of those also keep the clothes evenly spaced.

Comments

[i_was_like_you]

Adding to this and would work best with a few clothes pins or the laundry chain idea, would be to use the closet space saver hanger holders. Hang the space saver horizontally on the line, put your clothes on their hangers, and hang them from the space saver (which you may need to use clothes pins at the ends to keep it from sliding). The clothes will be sorted onto the space saver, and when they are dry, you just carry the space saver, clothes and all from one end, then hang it in the closet. To further the idea of using chains for laundry, cut lengths of chain with a hook on each end can be used as a space saver. It'll work just like the plastic version. Heck, even using the plastic chain can work for it and weighs less. Just make sure it's a durable enough plastic chain to accommodate the weight of your laundry. Space the clothes as many links apart as you like to allow air to dry the clothes,

[robhybrid]

Thanks for the insight. I'll have to give this a try. I've been line drying my clothes for some time now. Another thing people can do to improve the impact of doing laundry is to run the washing machine drain outside and use it to water the plants. You have to use biodegradable detergent though.